Church services remember victims of wildfires

Australians mourned the victims of deadly wildfires at church services across the country, as news emerged of a class action lawsuit against a power company over the cause of one of the blazes.

More than 180 people were killed and 1,800 homes destroyed when some 400 blazes tore across Victoria state on February 7 in Australia’s worst-ever wildfire disaster.

Police arrested one man on arson charges connected to one fire and suspect foul play in at least one other.

A law firm lodged a suit in Victoria’s Supreme Court against power supplier SP Ausnet alleging negligence for allowing an overhead power line to fall, starting a wildfire, The Age newspaper reported.

SP Ausnet was not immediately available to comment on the report.

Residents of towns in the 1,500-square mile fire zone gathered at church services to pray for the dead and seek comfort from each other.

The scene was repeated at churches across the country, which has been deeply shocked by the tragedy.

At Whittlesea, a town about 60 miles north of the state capital of Melbourne, about 200 people attended the Whittlesea Christ Church for services led by the Archbishop of Melbourne, Philip Freier, and Governor General Quentin Bryce.

Whittlesea has become a centre for relief efforts for neighbouring towns such as Kinglake, where scores of people died and which was almost completely destroyed.

An outpouring of charity has raised more than 90 million Australian dollars (60 million US dollars) in donations to official relief funds.

Community Services Minister Jenny Macklin announced Sunday that families whose homes were destroyed would get a 10,000 Australian dollars cash payment to start the rebuilding process.

The federal and Victoria government have promised millions of dollars more, and say a comprehensive rebuilding strategy would be released later this week.